Omugulugwombashe

Omugulugwombashe (also: Omugulu-Gwombashe, Omugulu-gwOombashe, and Omgulumbashe, Otjiherero: giraffe leg[1]) is a settlement in the Tsandi electoral constituency in the Omusati Region of northern Namibia. The settlement features a clinic and a primary school.[2] In Omugulugwombashe the first battle of the South African Border War was fought in 1966. The government of Namibia erected a monument in honour of this battle at the thirtieth anniversary of the start of the conflict in 1996.[3]

Omugulugwombashe is located 22km west of Tsandi, on the D3633 gravel road.[4]

Battle at Omugulugwombashe

In 1966 the United Nations General Assembly revoked South Africa's mandate to govern South West African (now Namibia) territory and placed it under direct UN administration. South Africa refused to recognize this resolution.[5] South West African People's Organization (SWAPO) at that time prepared for armed resistance and founded its armed wing, the South West African Liberation Army (SWALA) in 1962. Many of its erstwhile commanders were in exile but SWALA began to infiltrate the north of Namibia to establish training camps. Omugulugwombashe was one such training camp, established in June 1966 by SWALA commander John Ya Otto Nankudhu. The group under Nankudhu had just started to build defensive structures[1] and planned to train about 90 insurgents there.[6]

The area in which the battle took place is forested, on the western fringes of the Cuvelai Basin.[7] On 26 August 1966, eight helicopters landed troops of the South African Defence Force and South African Police to attack the guerrilla fighters at Omugulugwombashe. At the time of attack there were only 17 insurgents in the camp.[8] It was the first armed engagement of the South African Border War, also known as the Namibian War of Independence.[9] Among those SWALA fighters captured and imprisoned were:


Other guerrillas escaped but were detained in later years for their participation in the setup of the camp, for instance Lameck 'Kagwaanduka' Ithete who was arrested only in 1969. He served three years jail time in Pretoria for his involvement.[15]

After the battle, PLAN blamed spies in the region for betraying them. Sam Nujoma held a council in which he reportedly stated that "We made mistakes. We won't do that again".[16]

Commemorations

In commemoration of this day, August 26 is a public holiday in Namibia. It is recognized by the United Nations as Namibia Day[17] but Namibians refer to it as Heroes' Day.

Omugulugwombashe today features one of Namibia's two state cemeteries, where national heroes are buried. It also contains a memorial shrine, inaugurated by Namibia's founding president Sam Nujoma, and a statue of the six soldiers leading the camp when the attacks started on August 26, inaugurated by Namibia's second president Hifikepunye Pohamba:[18]

Omugulugwombashe Medal

Although the action, in itself, was of little military significance, it represents the first engagement in what would be a long, intense and ultimately successful conflict. As such, it retains a totemic value that continues to endure and is commemorated in the prestigious decoration for veterans of the Liberation War, the Omugulugwombashe Medal.

Omugulugwombashe Star

A further commemoration of the battle is the name given to the country's premier rail-service. Namibia's first luxury passenger train, from Windhoek to Ondangwa, was named the Omugulugwombashe Star on its inauguration, on July 15, 2006.[19] This train, manufactured in China, was however grounded after a few rounds of service, because the locomotives packed up shortly after inception and were found unsuitable for Namibia’s railway network. Afterwards, the weekly train service to Ondangwa was stopped.[20]

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See also

References
  1. Dierks, Klaus. "Chronology of Namibian History, 1966". klausdierks.com. Retrieved 24 June 2011.
  2. "Presidential and National Assembly Elections 2009". Supplement to several Namibian newspapers. Electoral Commission of Namibia. November 2009.
  3. "Government Gazette No. 3679". Government of Namibia. 15 August 2006.
  4. Livia Pack; Peter Pack (2013). Namibia. DuMont Reiseverlag. p. 400. ISBN 978-3-7701-6715-9.
  5. "Namibian War of Independence 1966-1988". Armed Conflict Events Database. Retrieved 30 November 2009.
  6. "John Ya Otto Nankudhu passes on". New Era. NAMPA. 22 June 2011.
  7. Jacques Bezuidenhout, Hennie Smit (2018). African Military Geoscience: Military History and the Physical Environment. African Sun Media. p. 211.CS1 maint: uses authors parameter (link)
  8. Sasman, Catherine (27 August 2010). "Julius Shaambeni Shilongo Mnyika: the guerilla [sic] fighter (1938 to 2003)". New Era.
  9. Petronella Sibeene (17 April 2009). "Swapo Party Turns 49". New Era.
  10. Julius Shaambeni Shilongo Mnyika: the guerilla fighter (1938 to 2003) New Era, 27 August 2010
  11. Sasman, Catherine (22 June 2011). "Decorated hero dies". The Namibian. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012.
  12. "Namibia: Immanuel Shifidi - a Martyr of the Namibian Revolution", The Namibian New Era, July 15, 2011, Shimpapi Shiremo
  13. "Gaus Shikomba Imprisoned for Life". Sabracelets.org. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  14. "Gaus Shikomba". Sahistory.org. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  15. Shivute, Oswald (20 August 2014). "Swapo councillor, war vet die". The Namibian. p. 3.
  16. Narmore, James. "Charles Burnett: A Cinema of Symbolic Knowledge". University of California Press. p. 194. Retrieved 7 November 2019.
  17. United Nations Conferences and Observances
  18. Shivute, Oswald (23 May 2014). "Pohamba unveils statues at Omugulugwombashe". The Namibian.
  19. "Omugulugwombashe Star proving popular". The Namibian. 12 September 2006.
  20. "Chinese rails for Oshikango railway". The Namibian. 13 November 2009.
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